Bo Horvat gets emotional saying goodbye to the Canucks

This just in, the Vancouver Canucks have traded captain Bo Horvat to the New York Islanders in exchange for Anthony Beauvillier, Aatu Raty and a 1st round pick.

TSN insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the 1st round pick is top 12 protected, meaning that if the pick ends up in the top 12 of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft then it will remain with the Islanders and the Canucks will get the Islanders' 2024 1st round pick with no protection.

The Islanders are obviously getting the better player in the deal in Horvat, who is on pace for a career season. The thing is... Horvat is NOT signed past this season and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason. It remains to be seen what Isles GM Lou Lamoriello does with Horvat, but it's clear that Lamoriello and the Islanders have their sights set on a playoff spot this Spring, otherwise why would they stick their necks out so far for a rental player. The thing is, the Islanders have had so much difficulty filling the net this season and they've just acquired a guy who's on pace to score 50 goals this season. That's a win.

Interestingly enough, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reports that the Islanders have had NO contract negotiations with Horvat. If I were a betting man, I'd bet that Horvat hits the open market as a free agent.

Yikes... that's a LOT of risk for the Isles.

As for the Canucks, they get a decent return for their now former captain. Beauvillier seems like he's been around forever, but he's just 25 years old and, arguably, hasn't even hit his prime yet. He has 9 goals and 20 points in 49 games for the Isles this season and managed 22 goals and 34 points in 75 games last season. He's signed for one more season at $4.15 million. As for Ratu, some scouts believe that he's a bit of a diamond in the rough. The 20 year old Finnish forward was once seen as a potential top pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, but fell precipitously in his draft year and ended up falling to the Islanders in the 2nd round at 52nd overall .He's been solid to start his pro career though with seven goals and 15 points in 27 games for the AHL's Bridgeport Islanders this season and a further two goals in 12 points for the NHL's Islanders this season. He's a legit NHL prospect and Canucks fans should be intrigued by his acquisition.

Minutes following the trade, Horvat had lots to say and went out of his way to thank Canucks fans for their support throughout the years:

"I can't say enough about the fans and the province of BC and all of the unbelievable people that I've met in my time in Vancouver. I'm getting emotional here. It's a tough goodbye..."

"I'm not gonna lie in the summer time and early in the year I thought I was gonna be a Canuck, a Canuck for life. Things didn’t work out that way. It hasn’t been an easy year.”

"With everything that went on and the unknown and my family's unknown and people asking me what was going to happen. And then having to deal with you guys (the media) everyday, definitely didn't make it easier."

"It's 9 years there. It was a long time. There were so many great memories, and I met so many great people."

- Bo Horvat